SimileA simile is a figure of speech that says that one thing is like another different thing. We can use similes to make descriptions more emphatic or vivid.

We often use the words as...as and like with similes.

Common patterns for similes, with example sentences, are:

something [is*] AS adjective AS somethingHis skin was as cold as ice.It felt as hard as rock.She looked as gentle as a lamb.

something [is*] LIKE somethingMy love is like a red, red rose.These cookies taste like garbage.He had a temper (that was) like a volcano.

something [does**] LIKE somethingHe eats like a pig.He smokes like a chimney.They fought like cats and dogs.

stative verb: be, feel, smell, taste etc** action verb

List of AS...AS SimilesThis is a list of well-known AS...AS similes. There are more similes, of course, some common and others less common because anyone can make a simile at any time--you too!

simile meaning comment

as alike as two peas in a pod identical or nearly so

as bald as a coot completely bald

as big as a bus very big

as big as an elephant very big

as black as a sweep completely black sweep = chimney sweep

as black as coal completely black

as black as pitch completely black

as blind as a bat completely blind may be exaggeration

as blind as a mole completely blind may be exaggeration

as bold as brass very bold usually in a negative sense

as brave as a lion very brave

as bright as a button very bright

as bright as a new pin very bright and shiny

as busy as a beaver very busy

as busy as a bee very busy

as busy as a cat on a hot tin roof

very busy

as calm as a millpond very calm and still usually said of water

as clear as a bell very clear of a sound

as clean as a whistle very clean

as clear as crystal very clear

as clear as mud not at all clear irony/sarcasm

as cold as ice very cold

as common as dirt very common, rude, vulgar

usually said of a person

as cool as a cucumber cool

as cunning as a fox cunning

as dead as a doornail dead

as dead as the dodo dead, extinct the dodo is an extinct bird

as deaf as a post completely deaf may be exaggeration

as different as chalk from cheese

very different

as drunk as a lord completely drunk

as dry as a bone very dry

as dry as dust very dry

as dull as dishwater dull, boring usually said of a person

as easy as A.B.C. very easy

as easy as apple-pie very easy

as flat as a pancake completely flat

as free as a bird very free to go anywhere

as fresh as a daisy very fresh

as gentle as a lamb very gentle usually said of a person

as good as gold very good and obedient usually said of a person

as happy as a lark very happy usually said of a person

as hard as nails very tough in character of a person

as hot as hell very hot

as hungry as a bear very hungry

as hungry as a wolf very hungry

as innocent as a lamb innocent, not worldly-wise

usually said of a person

as large as life conspicuously present

as light as a feather very light

as light as air very light

as mad as a hatter completely crazy

as mad as a hornet very angry

as nutty as a fruitcake completely crazy

as obstinate as a mule very obstinate, stubborn

as old as the hills very, very old

as pale as death very pale or white in the face

of a person

as plain as day very clear

as poor as a church mouse poverty-stricken

as poor as dirt poverty-stricken

as proud as a peacock very proud

as pure as snow pure and innocent

as pure as the driven snow pure and innocent

as quick as a wink very quick(ly)

as quick as lightning very quick(ly)

as quick as silver very quick

as quiet as a church mouse very quiet

as safe as houses very safe, secure

as scarce as hen's teeth very, very scarce irony (hens have no teeth)

as sharp as a razor very sharp

as sick as a dog very sick

as sick as a parrot very sick

as silent as the dead completely silent

as silent as the grave completely silent

as slippery as an eel slippery, evasive of a person

as slow as a snail very slow

as slow as a tortoise very slow

as smooth as silk very smooth

as snug as a bug in a rug in a very comfortable position

humorous

as sober as a judge sober

as solid as a rock solid

as solid as the ground we stand on

solid

as sound as a bell very clear of a sound

as sour as vinegar very sour

as steady as a rock very steady

as stiff as a board completely stiff

as straight as an arrow straight an arrow flies straight

as strong as an ox very strong

as stubborn as a mule very stubborn, obstinate

as sturdy as an oak very strong and solid

as sure as death and taxes absolutely certain to happen

as tall as a giraffe very tall

as thin as a rake very thin

as timid as a rabbit very timid

as tough as leather very tough

as tough as nails very tough often said of a person

as tough as old boots very tough often said of a person

as welcome as a skunk at a lawn party

not welcome at all irony/sarcasm (skunks stink)

as white as a ghost very pale or white in the face

of a person

as white as a sheet pure white

as white as snow pure white

as wise as Solomon very wise King Solomon

as wise as an owl very wise

[is] LIKE something possible meaning (depending on context)

like a rose beautifullike a volcano explosivelike garbage disgustinglike an animal inhumanlike spaghetti entangledlike dewdrops sweet and purelike golddust preciouslike a tip very untidy (tip = garbage dump)like a dream wonderful, incrediblelike stars bright and beautiful

[does] LIKE something meaningto drink like a fish to drink a lotto eat like a bird to eat very littleto eat like a horse to eat a lotto eat like a pig to eat impolitelyto fight like cats and dogs to fight fiercelyto sing like an angel to sing beautifullyto sleep like a log to sleep well and soundlyto smoke like a chimney to smoke heavily, all the timeto soar like an eagle to fly high and freeto work like a dog to work very hard

Note that with the AS...AS pattern, the first AS is sometimes suppressed, for example:

His skin was cold as ice.

The above patterns of simile are the most common, but there are others made withadverbs or words such as than and as if, for example:

He ran as fast as the wind. He is larger than life. They ran as if for their lives.

Similes can include other figures of speech. For example, "He ran like greased lightning" is a simile that includes hyperbole (greased lightning).

Similes often make use of irony or sarcasm. In such cases they may even mean the opposite of the adjective used. Look at these examples:

His explanation was as clear as mud. (not clear at all since mud is opaque)

The film was about as interesting as watching a copy of Windows download. (long and boring)

Watching the show was like watching paint dry. (very boring)

Similes are often found (and they sometimes originate) in poetry and other literature. Here are a few examples:

A woman without a man is like a fish without a bicycle - Irina Dunn Dawn breaks open like a wound that bleeds afresh - Wilfred Owen Death has many times invited me: it was like the salt invisible in the waves

- Pablo Neruda Guiltless forever, like a tree - Robert Browning Happy as pigs in mud - David Eddings How like the winter hath my absence been - William Shakespeare As idle as a painted ship upon a painted ocean - Samuel Taylor Coleridge Jubilant as a flag unfurled - Dorothy Parker So are you to my thoughts as food to life - William Shakespeare Yellow butterflies flickered along the shade like flecks of sun - William

Faulkner

Popular songs, too, make use of simile:

A woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle - U2 Cheaper than a hot dog with no mustard - Beastie Boys I must do what's right, as sure as Kilimanjaro rises like Olympus above the

Serengeti - Toto It's been a hard day's night, and I've been working like a dog - The Beatles Like A Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan Like a bat outta [out of] hell - Meat Loaf My heart is like an open highway - Jon Bon Jovi These are the seasons of emotion and like the winds they rise and fall -

Led Zeppelin Thick as a Brick - Jethro Tull You are as subtle as a brick to the small of my back - Taking Back Sunday